We've all followed the building of Robert's beautiful house using skilled tradesmen and built to a high level of building codes.

Well, building a house in Haiti has a few differences. I'm involved in building the house because I am a volunteer with a Canadian group that drills wells to provide fresh and safe drinking water to the majority of Hatians that often are drinking unsafe and polluted water.

We train Haitian crews to drill wells and install pumps but Canadian volunteers are still required to travel to Haiti and oversee such things as administration and the overhaul and repair of equipment.

We have leased an old rat infested farmhouse but have to be out by the end of March. Fortunately it withstood Saturday night's 5.9 earthquake without falling down. We have constructed a house of our own on several acres that we own. It is a walled compound, a bit of an understatement, at places it's 15' high. This is an all in one compound and also houses our stores and maintenance shop.

The building permit process in Haiti is remarkably simple and hassle free. You just start building, no need to submit plans etc. At some point the Mayor will come out to give his blessings for the project. That is after he looks at what's being built, decides on a value, in our case a nice round US$10,000 per floor and he has his the cash in hand. Hey, the bright side is that there aren't any property taxes. I said the process was simple, I didn't say cheap.

The house has two levels and is, in fact, a two level duplex with each level having two bathrooms and two bedrooms, a kitchen and living area as well as covered decks on two sides.

It was built with Haitian labor but to Canadian specs for concrete and rebar etc. My job was to wire it to Canadian standards. All wiring is surface run conduit and with 10' ceilings and one rickety ladder a bit of extra work. The high heat and humidity add another dimension.

A few photos of the old farm house and the new place.

Ron

Ron I applaud you ! One of the good humans in this world making the world better ! Be safe my friend Pat

Ron, THANKS for your contribution to man kind and bettering the life of others.
I think how the building permit part was handled shows you the problem in Haiti, corruption at many levels of government, but sadly this is a problem in most of the poorest countries on our planet.

Holy Northwest Territories, Ron! Hats off to you and your fellow volunteers. Never been to Haiti but did vacation once, Puerto Plata, insulated, gated resort. Needed to break out and see the real world so rented a car and drove a few hundred miles everywhere. Quite a reality check that was. You do good work.

__________________Myron"A billion here, a billion there...add it all up and before you know it you're talking real money."Everett Dirkson

It's a common situation the world over where structures and built of concrete and with block infill. Yes, there are claims that the house is still "unfinished" and doesn't pay any taxes but I really don't think that's the case.
Ron

I was told the same story about no taxes until completed both in Mexico and Peru, by guides - and it looked like about 90% of the concrete buildings had rebar sticking out the tops.

Thanks for all the thanks. I get my payback when I see kids being able to eagerly access safe water.

Our guys replaced a broken rod in a well and almost instantly it was back in service.

Re: comments about corruption. Yes, it's rampant. Jim commented about maybe building with wood. That would have required a container of lumber. In Haiti there isn't a Civil Service Commission that hires staff based on merit. Instead folks buy their job. In the case of a Customs officer that puts them in a position to charge sometimes extravagant "import fees".

Hopefully things will change with the younger generation being wired into the modern world.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you Ron. My wife and I have been to Haiti a number of times to help rebuild after hurricanes and on medical mission trips. My wife is headed back next month on a medical mission trip (Mary's a RN). We love those people and the need is great, especially the need for clean water. You're a good man. Thank you.